(cantidades sealadas en proporciones o litros cuando se indica):

Cecil E. Watts
1 alcohol isoproplico / 1 agua bi-destilada (para discos muy sucios o en mal
estado)
Steven Rochlin
2 lt. agua bi-destilada / 2lt. alcohol isoproplico / 1 gota de Triton X-100
(surfactante inico)
Don Roderick
4 agua bi-destilada / 1 alcohol isoproplico (91%) / 7-8 gotas de detergente
lquido sin aditivos
Keith Monk
1 agua bi-destilada / 1 alcohol desnaturalizado (90% etilo, 9.5% metilo, .5%
piridina)
Rudolf A. Bruil
2 lt. agua bi-destilada / 1 lt. alcohol / 1/2 lt. alcohol isoproplico / 20 a 30 gotas de
detergente lquido, Photoflo o similar (lquido fotogrfico para acelerar el secado
de las fotos)
ADVERTENCIA: TODOS ESTOS LIQUIDOS SON TOXICOS E INFLAMABLES - USAR EN
LUGARES VENTILADOS Y LEJOS DE LA PRESCENCIA DE NIOS O MASCOTAS
El agua destilada tiene que ser la que venden en tiendas mdicas (no agua
desmineralizada o destilada para vehculos, en realidad se llama bidestilada); el
alcohol debe ser de tipo industrial y sin aditivos (no usar el que se vende en
farmacias ya que contiene grasa - la grasa no se evapora), se vende en tiendas
electrnicas o de computacin; El detergente lquido tiene que ser de tipo no
agresivo (NO USAR LAVALOZA NI LIMPIA VIDRIOS). Realizar la mezcla en un
envase que permita agitarse para poder mezclar y diluir bien los lquidos,
adems con tapa para evitar accidentes y evaporacin.
La limpieza con lquido (en caso de no contar con una mquina limpiadora), debe
hacerse con un cepillo para limpieza "hmeda" o una esponja o "roller" dedicada
a sto (lavable, con tratamiento anti-hongos, etc); y siempre en el sentido de los
surcos (de manera circular y lentamente para evitar esttica), nunca del centro
hacia afuera como en los CD. En lo posible despus de lavar, secar los discos con
un pao anti-esttico y esperar una hora mnimo para que se evaporen los
lquidos completamente
Siempre antes de limpiar el disco con algn lquido, realizar limpieza en seco con
cepillo de fibra de carbono. Mantener el Mat y la aguja limpios y sin polvo.

How-to: record cleaning devices and fluids

[Italian version]

Everyone knows how important is the quality of the record in order to get good
results from our stereo system. Simply put, our hi-zoot stereo systems can
do nothing if the record we're trying to listen to is poorly recorded or damaged.
And while there's nothing we can do to improve the performance of a poorly
recorded disc, there are many things we can do to keep our good records in perfect
condition.
How to store those LPs: horizontal or vertical?
Vinyl is a funny material: it is black (normally), flexy and with a
very strong memory. What does this mean?
It is very easy to deform it but very hard to make it flat again once it has
been tacoed (from tacos, those hot Mexican thingies).
So the best way to store our beloved records is the one that minimizes mechanical
stresses: keep them as vertical as possible.
Storing them horizontal will, depending on how many records we have, put
excessive load on the first ones in the pile, causing unwanted deformities, tacoings
and groove damage.
Once the disc is warped we can only try to make it flat again: put the record under
dozens of hi-fi mags, their heavy load will help, at least in this situation.
How to play those tacoed records
This is a problem, dudes. If the deformation is serious there's nothing we can do.
For example, if the record is bell-shaped, whenever we try to make if flat by
pushing down the vertex, it will reverse its shape symmetrically with respect to the
standard horizontal plane (ok, I confess: I'm a mathematician).
If the situation isn't so tragic we can try to flatten the LP using a disc clamp.
This is a device you place over the platter that, either thanks to its weight or to the
fact that it can be firmly secured over the spindle, pushes the disc against the
platter, flattening it (the LP not the platter :-)).
The clamps that work by gravity do have a shortcoming: they put an unwanted
stress over the platter and the spindle, and wrong placement can permanently
damage the turntable. You've been warned :-)
The clamps that can be locked over the spindle seem to be harmless.
I use a simple device called The Pig, made by the SEE Company (Revolver TT, for
example), a rubbery "nose" that almost glues over the spindle. It does not do
wonders, but it works, is light, cheap and cool.
What else ?
Some hi-end turntables use air pumps to glue the record to the platter but the high
cost of these devices has had some consequences on their popularity.
Then there are some platters or even record mats that have been designed to
work without any clamping device.

The Ringmat is a well-known example. You should know what kind of ideas the
designer of your turntable had in mind before using any aftermarket fancy device.
How to clean our vinyl
If you are a clever guy you should try to keep your records as clean as possible i.e.
you should try to avoid the dust reaching the grooves.
Some advice: keep the mat of your turntable as clean as possible.
If you have a felt mat it could be a difficult task: dust is everywhere and felt seems
to like it a lot. Don't try to wash a felt mat. Never. Use a vacuum cleaner instead if
at all possible. Then try to keep the inner record sleeves (use antistatic sleeves) as
dust-free as possible.
Also, playing records with the dust cover on may help keep dust away from our
grooves but many feel this is the worst way to use a turntable.
The dust cover acts like a microphone and passes any unwanted air vibration
(Music from the speakers, for instance) to the needle, the cantilever and the
cartdridge, causing acoustic feedback and a lot of other terrific side-effects :-)
Some turntables have been designed to work best with the dust cover on, so listen
to a record both ways for the possible differences. Choose the solution that sounds
better.
Now that we know how to avoid dust we should learn the best ways to remove it.
The No.1 rule of record cleaning is to avoid that the dust reaching the bottom of
the grooves.
In other words we should take extreme care to NOT worsen the situation.
There are poorly cleaned records which are only apparently dust-free. Actually the
dust has been moved from the surface to the bottom of the grooves where it is
more harmful and difficult to remove.
A lot of devices have been developed to avoid this problem. Among these are the
carbon fiber brushes (Decca-style) and some self-adhesive rollers.
Some of these carbon fiber brushes have the handle made out of a conductive
material in such a way that static electricity can be easily moved from the record to
our body and then grounded. This trick works thanks to the conductive properties
of the carbon fibers.
Speaking of rollers, one of the best of them -dunno if it is still available- is the
Rolling Cleaner by Nagaoka. It is made of a very strange sticky rubber compound
that literally detaches the dust from the surface of the disc. Once the roller gets
dirty it can be washed with water et voil it is ready to stick again as new.
I must say that after 10 years of regular use it still works as efficiently as the first
day.
If you can find one, buy it. It's a bargain (usual disclaimers apply here, eh).
When the dust combines with moisture, fingerprints and other agents it's time to
take a shower.

The market is overcrowded with dozens of magic fluids that promise to be the
ultimate solution (pun intended) to our cleaning problems. Normally these magic
bottles don't come cheap. So audiophiles all around the World have started to make
their own cleaning fluids at home at a fraction of the cost of the official ones.
Thanks to the Analogue-Addicts mailing list, particularly to the ubiquitous :-)
friend Steven -Enjoy the Music- Rochlin) and to Bruce Kinch, Editor of the renowned
newsletter "Primyl Vinyl Exchange" (PO Box 67109 Chestnut Hill MA 02167
Tel/Fax 617-739-3856) here are some secret recipes for you:
The following recipes are for a 4 liter (1 gallon) solution unless otherwise stated.
Steven Rochlin's recipes
Distilled water

Alcohol

Detergent

1 part

1 part isopropyl

none

1 part

1 part isopropyl

a drop of Triton X-100

1 quart (~ 1 liter)

1/2 quart denatured

10 drops Photoflo

3 parts

1 part denatured

a few drops

3 parts

1 part rubbing

a few drops

4 parts

1 part ethanol

some (Genie in the Bottle)

Laura Dearborn's recipe

Alcohol

Detergent

1 part isopropyl

1 drop Triton X-114 or Monolan 2000

Don Roderick's recipe

Alcohol

Detergent

1 part isopropyl (91%)

7-8 drops dishwashing detergent w/o additives

.
Keith Monks's recipe (TAS)
Distilled water

Alcohol + Detergent

1 part

1 part denatured alcohol

Distilled water
3 parts

Alcohol
1 part NON-lanolin
isopropyl

Detergents
10 drops Photo-Flo + 10 drops "Direct" tile
cleaner

I know there are more "solutions" but these are just meant to be starting points
and/or examples.

After washing the record with one of these fluids it is wise to rinse it with pure
distilled water. This way any remaining particles of dirt will be washed away from
the grooves.
Then you can dry the record using a soft chamois leather or a soft cotton cloth.
Esoteric drying can be done by clamping the record to a drill and turning it at the
highest speed possible. Seriously :-)
The bottom line is: keep your records as clean as possible, use antistatic inner
sleeves, try to remove dirt with brushes or rollers and do some home-washing once
they get very dirty.
DISCALAIMER: if you're not confident with the use of the ingredients cited
above, AVOID preparing these recipes at home. Ask someone who knows how to
safely use those or purchase commercially available disc-cleaning fluids.
Copyright 1997 Lucio Cadeddu - Translation supervisor: Earl Dunbar